


The One Time Forgot

by DoctorDeadWizard



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Adventure, Adventure & Romance, F/M, Falling In Love, Friendship/Love, Love, Memory Loss, Minor Original Character(s), Original Character(s), Outer Space, Pining, Retcon, Romance, Sharing a Bed, Sharing a Room, Ten Years Later, Time Travel, long term pining, this story has a soundtrack
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-02
Updated: 2018-01-05
Packaged: 2018-08-28 17:49:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8456008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DoctorDeadWizard/pseuds/DoctorDeadWizard
Summary: This story is not complete.Before Rose, there was Isabelle. There was a time after the Time War when the Doctor had another companion that he can't remember. They had so many adventures together, yet as much as she wants to find him and get him to remember, his memory of her has been wiped away. Will he ever remember her or will she be forever forgotten?





	1. The Lady, In the Garden, With a Bat

The air was cold when a lone woman walked towards a brick semi detached house lining the lane with others that looked similar. Her breath was visible in the glow of the street lamps as she came to the door. A redeye flew overhead particularly low ready to land in the north part of the sky. She put the key into the lock then gazed up into blackness at the twinkling little dots and smiled. That night, there was a quarter moon. A yawn escaped her as she turned the key.

Locking the door behind her, she flicked a switch to illuminate the foyer and part the living room. A life of posters of extraterrestrial beings and spaceships danced across her walls. There was a map of the United Kingdom marked with little red dots. She placed her keys in a dish that looked remarkably like a flying saucer. A crocheted pillow of the head of a Grey alien sat in the corner of a faded pink brocade chair. Science and alien magazines were scattered over the top of a coffee table in front of a dark blue couch. She absentmindedly hung her coat on a rack by the door.

As she walked up the stairs to her bedroom, she took out her earrings. At the top of the steps there was a switch that she clicked off to extinguish the lights downstairs. In her bedroom on the right, just passed the bathroom, there was a canopy bed with heavy red curtains. Old portraits hung on the golden yellow walls like a museum. A tapestry with a red and gold background had an image of a castle within a circle. It hung between the two windows that faced the back garden. Against the closest wall, a maple wardrobe stood sentinel and a matching dresser beside it. Opening the door to the wardrobe, she slipped off her court shoes to stow them. Then she slipped out of her office attire and into a set of pink flannel pyjamas. She sighed heavily as she made her way into the bathroom. As she brushed her teeth, she turned down her bed and drew her window curtains closed. A few moments later she was tucked in and pulled the toggle on the lamp on her night stand.

The night was still and quiet on that frosty night. She closed her eyes. There was the sound of the tick-tock of a mantle clock that sat on top of the wardrobe. The woman began to drift off to sleep. She was just about to fall into complete slumber when there was a strange whooshing groan sort of sound echoing outside from the back garden. It was an eerie sound which made her sit up in bed. Immediately, she went to her window to peer out. A big blue box with a small white light on top had appeared towards the rear garden wall. The woman quickly slipped on a pair of trainers, then retrieved a cricket bat from beside her bed. All the lights in her house were off and would remain that way as she descended the stairs with the bat raised over her shoulder. After she hastily donned on her coat, she cautiously made her way through the kitchen to the door leading out into the garden. She took a deep breath before opening it. 

There it stood, a big blue box with the words "Police Public Call Box" over the door. It looked nearly brand new, just needed a wash down. The door opened. With a gasp, she quickly hid behind a large tree in the middle of the garden keeping her back to it.

"This is not Mars," a male voice with a northern accent said as he stepped out of the box, then stopped. The woman's brow furrowed as she mouthed the word 'Mars.' "Ooh, new voice. At least it's not gravelly like the last one." 

His foot falls rustled the grass beneath his feet as he came closer to the tree. The woman held her breath as he walked passed the tree without noticing her. He went to reach inside his black leather jacket. She took it upon herself to get the upper hand on her intruder. She rushed up behind him and clocked the man on the back of the head with her bat. He collapsed to the ground with a moan.

"Oh, dear," she said as she went over to him. Placing her fingers on his neck, she checked for a pulse. "Odd, but still alive," she muttered.

About half an hour later the man began to stir. The woman stood there with the cricket bat still over her shoulder ready to swing if there be a need. His eyes flickered open. He tried to move but noticed he was tied to the tree. The man struggled for a bit but it was of no use. He looked around and met her gaze.

"Oh, hello," he said. "Uh, could you untie me?"

"No," the woman said bluntly tightening her grip on the bat. "What are you doing in my garden?"

"Landing," the gent said.

"Landing what?" she questioned.

"That big blue box over there," he answered.

"I don't see a crane or a truck," she observed.

"I flew it in."

"Flew? It's not a ruddy plane. It's a wooden box. You can't fly that thing," she said. She was getting irritated. "Who are you then?"

"I'm the Doctor," he said. "I'd offer you my hand to shake but it's tied against the tree."

"Doctor who? You gotta last name?"

"Nope. Just the Doctor," he said with a grin.

"I see," she said as she narrowed her eyes. "Don't want to tell me your name because then I won't have anything to tell the police when I call them."

"You haven't, have you?" he asked nervously.

"No."

"Oh, good. Right. I take it you're the one who tied me to the tree and hit me on the back of the head. That hurt!"

"Sorry, but there is a stranger in my garden. What did you expect me to do? Invite you in for tea?" she said heatedly.

"No, but I'm not a stranger anymore. You know who I am now. So, how about untying me?"

"I don't know who you are. I don't know what you are doing here. And how did you get that box into my garden without a truck?" she said frantically.

"You know who I am. I told you, I'm the Doctor. I came here because I my box brought me here. Did you go into the box?"

"No, it's locked."

"Ah, but you tried. The key is in the inside pocket of my jacket. Go on," he said with a grin urging her to retrieve the key. She took a step away from him. 

"I'm not getting the key. You might bite my ear off or something."

"Blimey, you do have an imagination, don't you?" 

The woman stared at him with frightened eyes. As she watched him, his eyes scanned her. It made her feel uncomfortable, as if he was reading her. She observed his face as it softened from his crazed grin.

"Look, you don't have anything to fear. I won't hurt you. What's your name?" he said softly.

She hesitated for a moment as she stared into his eyes. They were big and blue. His hair was dark and cut extremely short. The Doctor's build was slim but muscular. A small smile tried to creep across her lips as she remembered the feel of his abs as she pressed him against the tree. Remembering she needed to be in control of this situation, she quickly shook her head and her smile faded. She eyed his black leather jacket, then she stared into his eyes again. He was smiling sweetly. The Doctor didn't appear threatening. He was calm, friendly even. Perhaps he wasn't as wicked as she made him to be.

"My name is Isabelle," she finally answered.

"Well, Isabelle, do you have a last name?" he asked. 

She scrutinized him for a moment. "No last name unless you give me yours, Doctor, whoever you are."

"I told you, I'm the Doctor. That's it, no last name."

"Everyone has a last name."

"Not where I'm from."

"And where are you from?" she asked.

"Gallifrey."

"Is that an island in Scotland?"

"Ha!" he laughed.

"Oi! Just because I'm not proficient in all the islands doesn't mean you need to laugh about it," she scolded with a hand on her hip.

"Gallifrey is not in Scotland. It's a planet." The humour was no longer in his voice, but the smile remained as well as a twinkle in his eyes.

Isabelle stood up straight and rigid. Contempt seized her. Her nostrils flared and her lips disappeared into a rigid line. Now, he had crossed a line. Many she worked with made light of her love of outer space. She had learned to recognize someone who was joking about it. 

"Did, did you say planet?" Isabelle pondered this new information. She pointed the cricket bat at him as she said, "Now, I know you are just playing with me. I'm calling the police." She turned and walked towards the house. 

"No! Wait!" the Doctor yelled. "Please, don't phone them. Just get the key and look in the box."

"What kind of game are you playing at? Who sent you?" Isabelle questioned angrily as she spun around.

"No game. No one sent me," he responded.

Isabelle clenched her jaw then released it. She glared at him with uncertainty. There was something in his voice that told her he was telling the truth, but she didn't let her guard down. Slowly, she moved back towards him. The tension in her face eased somewhat. He sighed and started to smile again. She held the bat out in front of her until the tip of it rested on the centre of his chest. His smile faded.

"Don't try any funny stuff or I'll clock you again," she said. His Adam's apple rose and fell as he swallowed hard. The Doctor nodded. Carefully, she knelt down and reached into his pocket to dig out the key. It took her a moment. She grasped it quickly and withdrew her hand. A small silvery key sat in her palm. 

"The bat wasn't necessary," he whispered to her.

"Wasn't it? You didn't do anything funny, did you?" she said as she stood up. 

He snuffed out a chuckle and said, "Touché." 

Backing away from him, she made her way to the blue box. She looked over her shoulder at him. He sat there looking around. Maybe she could trust him. The Doctor hadn't tried anything. There wasn't even a flinch of muscle as she searched for the key in his pocket. She still didn't understand why he was here and what was with this box he was so fond of her to see. Finally, she directed her attention to inserting the key into the door.

"Why are you so keen for me to look in the box?" she asked before turning the key.

"I think you'll be pleasantly surprised," he replied.

"If this is some sort of prank, I'm going to beat the snot out of you to send a message to whomever sent you. I'm all for gags but when it comes to my love of outer space, you've stepped over the line, Mister." she said agitatedly. With the key pinched in her fingertips, she hesitated. The Doctor perked at her words.

"Love of outer space? Well, this just became more interesting," he muttered to himself. "And it's Doctor!" he shouted towards her.

"Whatever," she returned.

With a great big sigh, Isabelle turned the key slowly and then opened the door. She flinched, but nothing happened. Instead, there was a vast room within the small box. Her mouth fell open in awe. She stepped inside and put her hands out in front of her. When her hands did not come into contact with anything but air, she lowered them and stepped back out of the blue box. She closed the door behind her and stared at it. Then, slowly, as the idea hit her, a grin stretched across her face. 

"You have got to be kidding me!" she exclaimed as she turned around on the spot.

"What do you think?" he asked.

Isabelle ran towards the tree and stood in front of the Doctor. A smile stretched from ear to ear. He looked pleased to see her smiling. After laying the bat on the ground, she was straddling his legs, touching him all over.

"What are you doing?" he asked anxiously. Now, his muscles tensed.

"Looking for something," she said. "Aha!" She reached into the jacket pocket to produce a long metal object. "Metal? Usually they're made of wood," she said, then shrugged. "Can I have a go?"

He scrunched up his face. "No. Well, you could, if you knew how."

"Oh, I know how! They don't work as well for other people as they do for their owners," Isabelle said as she stood up. She pointed the long metal object in front of her. 

"True," he responded but appeared to be uncertain about her.

"You didn't come through the chimney. So you must have . . . but that must have been tremendously difficult with the big blue box. Unless the box is a portkey," she rambled pacing about and swinging the metal object around as she surmised how he got there.

"It's called the Tardis," the Doctor said. He eyed the long metal object with unease as she swirled it around.

"Tardis? That was never mentioned." Her eyes were bright and twinkling with childlike wonder as she returned his gaze. "It's true. Isn't it? The Tardis, as you call it, has an extension charm on it. Doesn't it?" she surmised.

"A what?" the Doctor asked.

"Oh, come on! Everything points to it! The larger on the inside Tardis. The wand. You popping out of no where! You're a wizard! It's true. It's all true!" she said clapping her hands together and bouncing on the balls of her toes in front of him excitedly. She stopped suddenly and knelt down beside him putting her face precariously close to his.

"Take me to it!" she said in a exuberant whisper.

"Take you to what?" he asked nervously.

"The castle!" she said gleefully knowing he was stalling.

"What castle?"

"Hogwarts!"

"I'm sorry, what?" 

"I know! I'm not suppose to know about it, but it's all there in the books," Isabelle started rambling again as she stood up shifting back and forth on her feet. "Muggles aren't suppose to know. I think it is one of those things, if you don't want someone to know about it, you hide it in plain sight. That's why J.K. wrote the books, to put it in plain sight and call it fiction. But everything about you points to it being true, so it has to be. The extension charm, the wand, the . . . ." she trailed off seeing the expression on his face. She could see the vacancy in his eyes of incomprehension. 

"But you must know about it. There are two movies and five books, going to be seven. It's all over the news and internet. Are you telling me you have never heard of Harry Potter?"

The Doctor shook his head.

"So, you're not a wizard?"

"Nope."

Isabelle stood still in front of him and allowed her shoulders to sag. She stared at him in bewilderment. There was that truthful gaze of his. If he wasn't a wizard, then who was he? Her brow gradually furrowed into anger again. Her mind was reverting back to the only other possibility, a prankster. Slowly, after pocketing the metal wand in her coat, she reached down to pick up her cricket bat.

"Then, who the hell are you?" she asked again raising her bat above her shoulder. He rolled his eyes.

"For the last time, I'm the Doctor," he said deliberately. "Isabelle, please, lower the weapon. I could explain so much more if you would just untie me."

"No, no. I will not untie you because if you're not a wizard, you flew in that," she said pointing her bat at the TARDIS, "and you mentioned a planet, then, you must be, what?"

"An alien!" he said.

Her face contorted into an odd expression that conveyed both uncertainty and positive awareness. 

"Yes!" he said grinning.

"No! Aliens usually want to take over the world and kill off the human race," she said taking a step away from him.

"You watch too many movies," the Doctor said rolling his eyes again.

"What are you doing here? What do you want?" she asked severely. She gripped the bat tightly.

"I don't know why I'm here, yet. I don't want anything. I was trying to visit Atlanna on Mars when I was pulled here instead," the Doctor explained.

"What's Atlanna?"

"It's not a what, it's a who. She's the high priestess on Mars and today is her birthday."

"You lie. There are no living things on Mars," she stated almost laughing.

"Yes, I do lie sometimes. Yes, there are living things on Mars," he said matter-of-factly. They stared at each other for a moment. She noticed his eyes lingering on the bat before returning her gaze. "Do you believe I'm an alien?"

"No. You look human."

"Do you believe the Tardis is bigger on the inside than on the outside?"

Isabelle narrowed her eyes. "Possibly."

"Do you think there are aliens on Mars?"

She hesitated. "Um, I want to."

"What do you believe is in outer space?"

Isabelle stared at him a moment. She finally lowered her weapon letting it drop to the ground. Frustration lit up on her face. 

Throwing her hands in the air, she said, "I don't know what to believe. I've read books, magazines, internet articles, seen television programmes on all sorts of things that are suppose to be real, and yet somewhere, someone, usually of higher authority, says it's not true. That's the sort of world I live in. I'm constantly looking for the truth, but I only find lies."

"Ah," he said.

"All I know, is that there is something out there and I plan to find out what. So don't lie to me about being alien. Don't lie to me about Mars. Just, don't lie!" she said with venom. "That's it! I'm done with this charade."

Isabelle went behind the tree and untied the ropes that held the Doctor. She let them drop once she was finished. Instead of getting up, she just sat on the cold ground leaning her back against the tree utterly irritated with the whole situation.

"Thanks," the Doctor said as he came to stand in front of her rubbing his wrists. He held out a hand to her. 

"What are you doing? You are free to go. You can stop the prank now. Who set this up anyway? Was is Beth? No, I bet it was Steven. Well, you can tell Steven he better try harder next time. He didn't even go to lengths to have you dress up as a proper alien. Pathetic, really."

"I have a feeling I'm not finished here."

"You're finished here when you tell me the truth. Then, you can go back home to your wife and kids. I'll be having a few words with Steven tomorrow."

"Steven didn't send me. No one did," the Doctor said sincerely.

"Seriously, stop."

"I'm telling the truth. I am an alien."

"Get it through your thick skull. The joke is over! Good bye!" she said angrily. She folded her arms over her chest forcefully and scowled at his boots.

"Come on. I could do with a cup of tea," he said. The Doctor put his hand out for her to take.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm thirsty. I want a cup of tea." 

"What?" Isabelle said looking up at him.

"Cup of tea," he said drawn out.

"Now?"

"Now," the Doctor said wiggling his fingers of his outstretched hand. She looked at it with intrigue.

"I suppose one cup of tea can't hurt and then you can go. I guess it's the least I can do to be hospitable," she said in a softer tone.

Isabelle took his hand. He pulled her up with ease. The Doctor walked towards the TARDIS.

"Where are you going? My kitchen's that way," she said pointing back towards her house.

"You still need convincing," he said walking through the doorway of the blue box leaving the door open.

"Seriously?" she mumbled standing by the tree.

She could see him become smaller as he approached the centre of the room inside the box. Befuddlement once again washed over her features in disbelief.

"Come on, then," the Doctor yelled from inside. Her feet finally moved towards the TARDIS. 

Once inside, Isabelle took a proper gander. It was a round room with the shape that resembled a turnip with a large six sided console in the middle of it. The centre of the console had a large tube with several smaller tubes within it that emanated an aqua light. On the walls were hexagonal cut-outs with lights in them. 

"What is this?" she said quietly to herself as she glance around then meandered towards the centre. When she stepped up on the platform where the console stood, the Doctor was busy pressing buttons and looking into a view screen deep in concentration.

She leaned against the console and thrust her hands into her pockets. Her fingers hit his metal wand. She took it out and examined it for a moment. He watched her contemplatively. Finally, she handed the wand back to him. He took it appreciatively.

"Thanks," the Doctor said. She nodded and just stared at the floor in thought. Seeing her far away gaze, he asked, "You still don't believe me, do you?"

The question pulled her out of her reverie. She looked over at him. Again, those kind eyes peered at her. She shook her head. He nodded his acceptance of the situation.

"Ask me anything," he told her.

"About what?" she questioned.

"Anything! Past, future, space," he prompted.

She thought for a moment, then asked, "Who really killed JFK?"

"I can't tell you that," he answered. Her face fell into scepticism "Sorry. Ask another one."

"Where will I be in ten years?"

"Don't know. I just met you. That's saying something, by the way. Anymore questions?"

"Are there really Grey aliens?"

"Yes," he answered.

"Are you really an alien?" she asked.

"Yes." 

"Why do you look so human?" she asked spitefully.

"There are two theories about that. One that humans descended from Gallifreyans and the other is that we descend from you lot."

"Ha! So, you're not really that alien," she said with chuckle.

"Oh, no, I'm alien. Our physiologies are different. I have binary circulatory system, two hearts rather than your one. I can withstand the vacuum of space as long as I have oxygen or I'll suffocate after six minutes. My temperature is about 22 degrees cooler than yours. Here, take a look."

He moved the view screen so that it showed the x-ray of a chest. Within the cage of ribs were two beating hearts. 

"You're a digital genius, congratulations. That's not a real x-ray."

"Oh, but it is. See?" He bounced up and down, so did the rib cage.

"You could have planned that with timing." He rolled his eyes.

"Fine," he said disdainfully. He brought out a stethoscope. He placed the ear pieces into her ears the pressed the chest piece to his chest. There was a heartbeat. 

"Yeah, so what?" she uttered.

Then he moved the chest piece to the right side of his chest, yet there it was, the heartbeat. She still looked at him with scepticism. He looked annoyed. He unfolded her arms and pressed the chest piece to her chest so she could hear her heartbeat. Then he moved it to the right side. She couldn't hear anything but air filling her lungs. She was stunned. He did have two hearts. Again, he jumped and moved about as did the x-rayed image on the monitor. He proved his point.

"What kind of alien are you?" Isabelle asked nervously as she stood up straighter.

"I'm a Time Lord from Gallifrey. I like to travel here. Humans are the most interesting species I've come across. And you! I've never met anyone like you," the Doctor explains as he points his wand at her. It made a slight humming sound and glowed blue at the tip. He then looked at it, then back at her, then back to the wand.

"You're not going to start doing experiments on me, are you?" she asked with uncertainty.

"Oh, I already did that with my screwdriver," he replied holding up the wand.

"That thing is a screwdriver? And it scanned me? I didn't feel anything." 

"Yes, it's technically a sonic screwdriver, more or less. Yes, it scanned you. No, you wouldn't feel anything."

"What did your screwdriver thingy say about me?"

"You are human from Earth," he said flatly.

"Is that all?"

"No."

"What else did it tell you?"

"I can't tell you that."

"Why not?"

The Doctor didn't say anything. He just stared at her from the side.

"Why not, Doctor? Is it bad?"

He turned the view screen back towards himself and started pressing buttons again. 

"You're not going to answer me, are you?"

"Nope."

With a pouty huff she sat on the jump seat just on the other side of him with her arms folded across her chest.

"So, where am I?" asked the Doctor

"You're on planet Earth, on the continent of Europe, in the country of England, in the county of Surrey, in the town of Stanwell," she answered indignantly. 

"Ah, a very thorough answer, thank you very much. Next question, what drew me here?" he said turning around to face her.

"That, I can't answer."

"No, you can't, only I can, eventually," he said. He examined the monitor again. "Has anything strange happened in the past twelve hours?"

"Some man was arrested over at the airport earlier today. He was carrying bullets in his pocket. I only know that because I work there. Biggest thing to happen there today. I worked late because of it," she answered with a shrug.

"Where was he flying from?" the Doctor asked.

"Dulles in Washington, D.C. He had to stop here to pick up his next flight to Dubai," she answered. "Ever since 9-11 anyone carrying anything suspicious is pulled off the plane."

"Aha! Get your coat. We going to Dubai?"

"Now? I was just about to go to bed. I have work in the morning," Isabelle said adjusting her coat she already had on.

"You'll be back in five minutes."

"How? Dubai is hours away."

"Time machine," the Doctor said indicating the TARDIS they were standing in with a small smile.

Isabelle contemplated for a moment. Her face softened before it spread into a smile.

"I'll be right back," she said as she ran towards the door. As she ran through it, she yelled, "Don't leave without me!"

"I won't," he said with a smile.

Isabelle ran all the way inside and upstairs to her bedroom where she flung off her pyjamas and trainers. Digging through her wardrobe and dresser, she flung clothes all over her room trying to decide what to wear. Five minutes later, Isabelle came bounding down the stairs in jeans, red t-shirt, and brown leather bomber jacket. She carried a pair of military style boots in her hand. Her long red hair was tied back in a ponytail. 

"Lovely place you have here," the Doctor said indicating the posters and such scattered around. "Hobby?"

"You could say that," she answered. She sat in the faded pink winged back chair to put on her boots.

"I took the liberty to correct a few mistakes on your star chart," he added indicating a notebook and a poster on the wall.

"Oh? Which ones?" she said lacing a boot.

"Deneb and Dabih," he answered.

"Really? I thought Deneb would be near Deneb Algedi," she said tying up the first boot.

"Nope. Deneb Algedi is the closest star. Deneb is the furthest away with Dabih somewhere in the middle. From your vantage point on Earth, Deneb is here and Dabih is here," he said as he indicated the stars on the chart. 

"Well, considering I've only seen them in a two dimensional capacity rather than your three dimensional view, you can understand my mistake."

"Yes, I do understand. To make you understand, I'll take you to see them."

"What? Now? Seriously?" she questioned with wide eyes as she stood up.

"Why not?"

"Because I thought we were going to Dubai," Isabelle reminded him.

"Oh, I almost forgot," the Doctor said. "Let's go!"


	2. Boiler Suit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After meeting the Doctor, Isabelle is taken on her first adventure to jail! It isn't to be locked up but to question an alien who had suspicious cargo.

"Do we need space suits or anything?" Isabelle asked as she shut the TARDIS door behind her. She hesitated to venture further into the room. 

The TARDIS was still new and formidable to her. The massive beige room with its hexagonal cut-outs with lights set in them, glowed with warmth. The interior was strange. 

"Nope. The Tardis takes care of all that!" the Doctor said over his shoulder as he approached the controls. 

"Fantastic," she said under her breath with a nervous grin. The woman looked up and around as she walked slowly up the ramp. 

"By the way, we aren't going to Dubai. We need to go to jail. You might want to hang on," the Doctor informed her as he started pushing buttons and pulling at knobs on the six sectioned console. 

"Jail?" Isabelle asked as she took her eyes off the huge glowing tube. She then grabbed onto the nearest support not giving his suggestion a second thought.

"Yes. I have a few questions for the man who had the bullets," he uttered as he pulled a lever.

"Right," she said under her breath as the TARDIS made that same groaning noise she heard from her garden. It jerked about as it took flight. "How long will it take us to get there?"

The Doctor kept his attention on the monitor that blinked and swirled with images. Then the TARDIS groaned again and everything settled. 

"We're here," the Doctor informed.

"Already?"

"Yup."

"How are we going to get in? Visiting hours are over."

"Take a look," said the Doctor with a small smile as he made his way over to the door and opened it.

Isabelle followed him as he passed her. Clinging to the side of the door jam, she peered outside. They were inside a building. A few lights were on further down the corridor where they had landed. A heavy door faced them and there were cell doors housing prisoners on either side of the passageway.

"We really did travel," she said in awe. "We're inside? Ooh, but it's dark," she mentioned softly.

"Not to worry. The man we need is just down there," the Doctor said quietly. He squeezed passed her going into the hallway.

As he walked amongst the cells, he scanned them with his screwdriver. Nearly half way down the passageway, the screwdriver's sound pitched higher. He peered into the window of the door. Cautiously, Isabelle followed behind the Doctor making sure there were no approaching guards. She stood beside him and looked into the cell as well.

The man inside was difficult to see given that his skin was dark. He was laid out on a cot. The Doctor waved his screwdriver over the lock. Isabelle heard a pop and the door opened. He walked over to the prisoner and gave him a tap on the shoulder. The man woke and looked up at the Doctor. Terror flashed in his eyes.

"Hello," the Doctor said to him as he waved his hand with a grin.

Abruptly, the man sat up on his cot. Isabelle quickly glanced through the cracked door to make sure there were still no guards making their rounds.

"Who are you?" the man said.

"I'm the Doctor."

"The Doctor?"

"Yes."

"Oh, thank goodness!" the man said with joy. "Can you help me? Those police officers confiscated my cargo and locked me up."

"I can't blame them. Your cargo looks like bullets. Very strict about that sort of thing here," the Doctor told the man. "You must be new."

"I am," said the man sadly.

Isabelle had been listening to their conversation.

"Hold on. Those things weren't bullets?" Isabelle asked as she leaned away from the door.

"No," the Doctor said turning towards her. "They're eggs. Alien eggs to be exact."

"Alien eggs? That look like bullets?" she questioned rhetorically. The Doctor nodded. Isabelle beamed. "Fantastic!"

"Now, she's starting to believe," the Doctor said under his breath.

"So what are you doing with them?" Isabelle asked the man as she moved into the cell standing next to the Doctor.

"I was trying to transport them to Dubai. My spaceship is there so I can take them to your moon," he explained. "At this rate, they'll never reach their destination and it must be complete before the New Moon."

"Well, that's next week," she said thoughtfully as she nibbled on a fingernail.

The Doctor stood to the side watching Isabelle. He wore a smug smile on his face. 

"Why were the eggs in Washington?" she continued. The Doctor crossed his arms over his chest and watched her.

"Their mother's ship crashed in Washington," he said sorrowfully.

"Yeah, but not before she was spotted over Vermont," the Doctor added.

"Did the mother survive?" Isabelle asked.

"No. I was sent to rescue the Krassen eggs, but I landed in Dubai by accident, so far from my destination. I couldn't risk my ship to be seen so I took human means of flight to Washington to retrieve them. I also had to bury the evidence of the crash. I was on my way back to Dubai, when I failed my mission."

"So, the eggs aren't yours?" Isabelle asked.

"No. My people look after the Krassen eggs. We are, how do you say, nursemaids?" The Doctor nodded.

"But you're alien too? You don't look much like an alien either." Isabelle commented.

"Show her," the Doctor said to the man.

"Are you sure?" he asked. The Doctor nodded again. "All right," the man said with a sigh.

The man stood up and started to undo his belt. Isabelle looked at the Doctor in alarm. The Doctor smiled at her. She tried to avoid staring at the man unbuttoning his trousers. He let them drop to the floor. The man was indeed naked underneath his clothing but nothing out of the ordinary. Isabelle pursed her lips together with unease. The Doctor glanced over at the man seeing Isabelle's distress.

"Turn it off!" the Doctor exclaimed.

"Oh, yes, sorry," the man said. He touched his watch. The shimmer hiding his true form disappeared leaving behind black furry cat legs.

"This is a Frathen Plar," the Doctor informed Isabelle seeing her wide eyed gaze.

"Frathen Plar," she repeated as she looked from the Doctor to the half cat.

"Yes," the Doctor said and then turned to the Frathen Plar. "I'm sorry, I didn't get your name."

"It's Jenro," the man answered pulling his trousers back up after turning the shimmer back on.

"Pleased to meet you, Jenro. This lovely lady here is Isabelle," the Doctor said. Then he clapped his hands together. "All right. We all know each other. Time to get you and those eggs to Dubai. Come along."

The Doctor began to walk towards the door. Isabelle followed.

"Uh, no," Jenro said. The Doctor stopped and turned around along with Isabelle. "The guards will notice I am missing. They will come looking for me but they don't know you are here. Perhaps you could find the eggs, Doctor. They won't give the eggs back to me even after my release." Jenro gave him a pleading look.

"When are you scheduled to be released?" Isabelle asked.

"Tomorrow morning, actually. They even rescheduled my flight to Dubai. I leave tomorrow afternoon," Jenro said with a slight smile.

"Blimey," the Doctor said with a wide grin. "Here's the plan. Isabelle and I will get the eggs. We'll come back here to fetch you and we'll all travel in the Tardis to Dubai. If anything should go wrong, we'll still see you tomorrow in Dubai. How does that sound?"

"Marvellous!" Jenro exclaimed.

"Seriously?" Isabelle said wide eyes. The Doctor nodded. "And we'll be able to do all this before I have to go to work tomorrow morning?"

"Yup," the Doctor said with a twinkle in his eye. Isabelle's eyes twinkled back in return.

"Jenro, who took the eggs?" Isabelle asked as she swung her head around to look at the other alien. The Doctor grinned widely.

"Forensics," Jenro answered. "I hope they didn't hurt the eggs too badly."

"Nah," the Doctor chimed in, "Their hard shells would halt them from probing into them. They were just looking for fingerprints and calibre."

"Then, all we need to do is find the forensics lab, or possibly the evidence locker because they could have moved them into storage after examining them," she surmised. 

"All right. Then off we go. No time to lose," the Doctor said with a nod. The two turned to leave. 

The Doctor and Isabelle exited the cell and closed the door behind them. Jenro came up to the door to watch them go. "If we can't get you out in time, it was nice meeting you, Jenro. At the very least, we'll see you tomorrow," Isabelle said and patted his hand through the tray slot.

"The same, Isabelle," he returned with a small smile.

"Come on," the Doctor said and the two headed down the corridor further into the building. 

At the end, Isabelle pressed herself against the wall as if she were some sort of spy. The Doctor stopped in the middle of the corridor looking at her strangely.

"What are you doing?" he asked her.

She looked at him and pressed a finger to her lips and made a shushing sound. Carefully, she peered through the door's window looking up and down the hallway.

"Trying to make sure we don't get caught," she told the Doctor.

The Doctor came up beside her and sonicked the door. It clicked open. After he opened it, Isabelle peeked her head out looking up and down the corridor. "Come on, the coast is clear. Which way should we go?"

The Doctor held up his screwdriver and pointed in both directions. "This way," he said indicating to the left.

There was a door that led to a staircase the took up to the next floor where the Doctor sonicked near the door and up to the next floor.

"It's this floor," he said opening the door. Isabelle followed after looking both ways for guards.

The hallways were brighter on this floor.. There were no longer cell doors but office doors. Each had a label on it to indicate what was inside. The Doctor read each door as they passed it; Isabelle looked at the door on the other side of the corridor. 

Ahead of them, they heard voices. The nearest door to them read "Maintenance." The Doctor quickly used the sonic screwdriver to unlock the door and the two escaped inside. It was merely a broom closet full of buckets, mops, brooms, and other cleaning equipment. Cords, rope, and miscellaneous things hung from hooks on the walls. It was a tight fit. The two were pressed together facing one another. Isabelle hands were up and pressed against the Doctor's chest. The Doctor was trying to sort out what to do with his hands. He tried to raise them, but they knocked into the broom handle threatening to clang against the back wall if he hadn't eased his arms back down. He tried to put them down beside himself but his elbow nearly banged into the door, which would have given them away. The only place for his hands were on her shoulders or in a very odd position over her head. He opted for the shoulders.

"Sorry," he whispered to her. His whisper seemed too loud in the enclosed space.

"It's . . . it's okay," she whispered in return.

The two stood there in the awkward silence. Isabelle's nose was precariously close to his chin. Likewise, the Doctor tilted his head back trying not lean his lips against her forehead. Isabelle sniffed the air.

"I smell pine," she whispered. 

"Cleaner at your feet," the Doctor said.

"Oh. Thought it was you."

"Come to think of it. Might be the soap I use."

"Smells . . . nice," Isabelle said quietly.

His hands clenched her shoulders tighter. Isabelle's breath quickened.

The muffle tone of male voices passed by the door. The two in the closet froze. Finally, after a minute which seemed like an hour to Isabelle, she spoke again.

"Do you think we, uh, should try to see if it's safe?" she said breathlessly.

"Yeah," the Doctor said taking his left hand off her shoulder. Then, he put it back. "Can you reach the knob? My elbow is stuck so I can't reach down."

"Uh, let me see," Isabelle offered as she wiggled her hand down his chest. He started to giggle. "Shh!" she scolded.

"That tickled."

"Sorry."

"It's okay. I don't mind. Well, I do mind in this situation, but normally I don't mind."

"Shush. I can't get to the knob because of your elbow. See if you can wrap your arm around my neck."

The position left them even closer. Isabelle's face was pressed into his shoulder. Her eyes widened. The smell of leather hit her nostrils. The Doctor kept his gaze on the rope hanging behind her and swallowed hard trying not to bury his nose in her hair. Slowly this time, she inched her hand around him to get her hand on the knob. With a twist, she cracked the door just enough for her to peer down the hall leaning into the Doctor's arm. The guards had just rounded a corner at the end of the hall. It was safe. She thrust the door open and the two of them fell out together then quickly parted. 

"Right," the Doctor said clearing his throat and straightening his jacket. "Let's continue, shall we?" He softly closed the maintenance door. 

Isabelle brushed herself off but could feel her face blush. She glanced over at the Doctor. Even he had a tinge of pink to his cheeks. He then moved down the hall and she followed him.

A bit further on they turned right to go down another corridor. The first door on the left read "Forensics Lab." The Doctor entered after unlocking the door with his screwdriver. Isabelle seemed uneasy and kept looking down the hall further.

"You coming?" the Doctor asked.

"No," she said. "I'm going to look further down the hall for the evidence locker. If you look here and I look in the locker, it will take less time. Less time, less likely to get caught."

"Okay," the Doctor said and turned to go into the lab but Isabelle didn't move.

"What? You're going to trust me, just like that?"

"You seem to know what you are doing," the Doctor said from the doorway. "Now, go."

"Well, I don't!"

Her breathing rate increased again. The Doctor, seeing her in distress, came towards her and placed a hand on her shoulder. He looked deep into her eyes.

"I trust you," he said with ease. 

Isabelle's breathing steadied. She nodded. He removed his hand and she stood up straighter.

"Half hour, back here. No more than that," the Doctor informed her. "Take this. I know what I'm looking for. This will help you unlock the door. All you have to do is press this button." 

He handed her the screwdriver. She took it and stuck it in her jacket pocket. She looked at the Doctor with an uneasy smile. He gave her a quick nod and then she turned to walk down the corridor.

As she walked down the sterile hall with its linoleum floor and light blue plaster walls. She kept her eyes on the doors looking for a particular one. Again, she found another door with "Maintenance" carved into the plastic plaque. She opened it. Inside she pulled out a dark green boiler suit. A similar set had been hanging in the closet she and the Doctor hid in. She took her jacket off and hung it in its place then put the boiler suit on. It was only slightly bigger than herself. Reaching into the pocket of her jacket, she extracted the screwdriver, then rummaged through the closet. She found a fluorescent tube. Smiling, she picked it up and continued down the hall. Isabelle strode easier now down the passageway continuing to search the door labels for the evidence locker. 

"Oi! Whatcha doin'?" a voice said from behind her. She turned around to come face to face with one of the guards.

Isabelle tried not to look startled as her heart hammered inside her chest. She was sure the pounding would give her away. Managing to take a deep breath, she wore a slight look of confusion which was both real and put on.

"I was looking for the evidence locker. Heard there was a fluorescent out," she stated matter-of-factly.

"I haven't seen you before? Are you new?" he asked eyeing her up and down.

"Yes, my first night," she conjured with a sweet smile.

"Well, Bruno," he said looking at the name on the boiler suit. "He's not going to like you wearing those, and the evidence locker is just down there to the left."

"Thanks," she said with a salute and turned to continue on her way. She slowly released the breath she had been holding.

Once she had come to her destination, she glanced back up the corridor to make sure no one was there. The guard had carried on with his rounds. She pulled out the screwdriver and pointed it at the door then pressed the button. It made its usual humming sound. The lock made the familiar click, then she turned the knob. It opened. Isabelle's face lit up!

Inside, she flicked on the lights. A sea of steel shelving, that held thousands upon thousands of boxes, was illuminated. The smile on her face faded at the sight of the huge room.

"Oh, no," she whispered to herself. "You've got to be kidding me."

Isabelle walked further into the gigantic room and glanced at the first box leaving the fluorescent leaning by the door. She noticed the boxes had dates on them. There was no order to the boxes that she could see. Maybe they were sorted by type of crime but she couldn't tell, nor did she have time to go through the contents of each box. 

"This is going to be like finding a needle in a haystack," she whined. 

She started walking down the rows of shelving reading the year as she went along. Being it only January, there wouldn't be a lot of boxes for the year 2004. She kept her eyes on the boxes. When she completed two rows, she glanced at her watch. It had been fifteen minutes. 

"I'm not going to be able to find the eggs in here at this rate," she muttered to herself. 

Then, she looked down into her hand. She still held the sonic screwdriver. It was set to unlock doors. She lifted the screwdriver to eye level.

"I don't want to get caught tonight, but I want to find those eggs. If there is anyway you can speed up this process and point me in the right direction, please do it," she pleaded with it.

Isabelle pointed the screwdriver in front of her, pressed the button, and continued to walk down the aisles. For a few moments, there was no difference in the sound of the screwdriver. As she began to make her way down another aisle, the pitch began to grow higher. She stopped and looked at the box on her left. It said May 1996. Then she turned to her right. There a box sat with January 2004 on it. With a small delighted squeak, she quickly pulled the box off the shelf and placed it on the ground. Swiftly, she took the lid off. Inside, there were white bags marked with names and dates. Scanning them with her eyes, she quickly found Jenro's name on it. She untied the white string and peered inside. There was a plastic zip top bag with five bullets in it. She lifted the bag out and careful placed it in her pocket.

Isabelle looked down at her watch. There were only five minutes left. Quickly, she replaced everything and ran to the door. Before exiting, she picked up the fluorescent she had left at the door. With a generous stride, she made her way towards the maintenance closet. 

Someone was walking towards her. It was the Doctor. She pulled the bag out of her pocket to show it to him with a smile beaming across her face.

"Excellent!" he said. "But what are you wearing?"

"Boiler suit," she said as she stopped at the closet. She handed the bag and the screwdriver to the Doctor then unzipped the boiler suit. Throwing it into the closet she grabbed her jacket. "Come on, let's get out of here."

The smile could not be wiped from her face as they started to retrace their steps back to the TARDIS. 

"Hey, Bruno! Who you got there?" said a familiar voice behind Isabelle. They turned around to see the guard she spoke with earlier standing there. 

Isabelle turned to the Doctor and said, "Run!"

They ran down the hall and made a right turn towards the stairwell door. She pulled it open and ran through with the Doctor close behind. At the bottom of the stairs, the bolted through the door and Isabelle looked through each little window for the one with the Tardis. They could hear footsteps coming down the stairs behind them.

"This one!" she shouted as she stopped and flung the door open. The TARDIS stood at the end of the corridor. As they passed Jenro, they shouted that they had his cargo was safe and sound but indicated they were being followed. He told them to go.

Inside the TARDIS, the Doctor quickly set it into motion as he could hear the guards banging on the door. 

A minute later, Isabelle was cautiously opening the door of the police box in Dubai as the Doctor stood behind her.

"We did it!" she screamed. Isabelle stepped out of the TARDIS. Turning around, she grabbed the Doctor's hands, and started jumping up and down.

"Yes, we did," he said smiling and laughing. She let go of the Doctor to dance around the parking lot where they had landed.

He watched her relish in the moment. Then, she stopped and put her hands to her mouth, but was still smiling underneath them.

"I can't believe we just did that!" she said after removing her hands.

"You did it, Isabelle," he remarked. "You got the eggs."

"Yeah, but it was a fifty-fifty chance that either one of us would find them," she stated dropping her hands to rest on her hips. The Doctor shrugged. The smile she wore quickly faded at that one gesture. Her arms dropped to her sides.

"Hold on. What's that shrug for?" 

He didn't respond but held her eyes with his. He took the screwdriver out of his pocket and gave it a toss up then caught it with ease. He winked. 

"You knew! You knew they weren't in the forensics lab. When did you know?" The happiness had waned from her.

"When I unlocked the door," he stated. "It was already unlocked. I was scanning the room. There was nothing there."

"Then, you had me take the screwdriver set to unlock the door. I guess it was you who set it to search the room as well, knowing I would use it to find the eggs. I didn't find them. You planned it," Isabelle deducted bitterly as she brushed passed him to go back into the TARDIS to sulk.

"I didn't make you go to the evidence locker. That was all on you. You made that decision alone, along with the boiler suit, which was rather brilliant," he said following her. 

"Yeah, but it wasn't all me. You helped," she said as she slumped into the jump seat.

"That's what I do," he said. The Doctor could see she felt defeated. "Come on! We still got the eggs, right now, safe and sound in the Tardis," he said with a smile trying to cheer her up.

Isabelle looked at him. He beamed at her and his eyes sparkled. That look washed away any self doubt Isabelle had. A modest smile crept across her lips.

"Yeah, we do, don't we?" 

"Come on, let's to do some sight seeing," the Doctor said pressing buttons and flicking switches. He held his hand over the last lever. He glanced over at her. She nodded and he pushed the lever down.


	3. Dubai

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Doctor takes Isabelle to Dubai to wait for Jenro's arrival. While there, they get to know each other a little better.

The Doctor landed the TARDIS in the parking lot of one of the hotels along the beach in Dubai. It was a city that was beginning to find itself that year. New construction was being erected in many places. It was a reason why Jenro could hide his spaceship so easily amongst the modern architecture. The ship was a bit smaller than the skyscrapers but blended perfectly it an upright position.

The Doctor and Isabelle left the blue box behind and headed towards the beaches. The afternoon sun shone down upon them. The Doctor gazed at her. He walked slightly behind her relishing in her humanities. He watched her take off her boots and socks, tie the laces together and throw them over her shoulder. A slight breeze blew off the water tossing her redheaded ponytail. Her sad brown eyes looked down as she kicked lightly at the sand. The nose on her face was straight, slightly wide, and speckled with freckles along with her round cheeks. Her small chin sat back in her profile revealing a slight overbite. She wasn't an alarmingly beautiful woman like you see in magazines. She had a simple elegance about her, as though her face belonged to another time.

The Doctor observed Isabelle slow her pace until she was walking beside him.

"Can I ask you something?" she said as they strolled the beach.

"Absolutely," the Doctor answered. He would gladly answer any question but, he had to be careful how he answered certain ones. 

"Why didn't we come when Jenro would be at the airport. Why come in the afternoon? I mean, I know we jumped in time anyway, but why not a bit further?" she asked.

He took a deep breath, shrugged his shoulders, and said, "Mostly because of you. I thought you might like this."

The Doctor wanted them to have time to get to know each other, especially if he wanted her to be his companion. He knew she would be full of questions. He even had some for her.

"Oh, well, it is very lovely," she said tucking a strand of hair behind her ear that had come loose from the breeze. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." 

They exchanged a small smile as they walked. 

"Why was Jenro worried about the New Moon next week?" she asked.

"The Krassen lay their eggs on various moons around the universe. The Frathen Plar follow the mothers. Once the eggs are laid, the Frathen Plar watch over them until they hatch while the mother returns to their planet. Once hatched, the Frathen Plar take the babies back to their mothers. The Earth Moon happens to be just right, right now. They bury the eggs in darkness. In this case, on the dark side of your moon. The New Moon portion of the story is just superstition. They think the offspring will have a better chance of survival," the Doctor explained.

"That's really interesting and fascinating," Isabelle said in awe.

"Is there anything else you want to know?" he pressed.

"Everything," she answered breathlessly.

"No one can possibly know everything," he said.

"You do," she stated.

"There is plenty I don't know."

"Name one thing you don't know."

He hesitated for a moment. His face contorted as he tried to think of something as he gazed at the length of sand in front of him. It wasn't until he glanced over at Isabelle that he realised there was something he did not know about. 

"You. I don't know much about you," he answered seriously.

She looked intrigued by his answer. "True enough." 

"My turn to ask you something, if you don’t mind."

"Alright then," she replied. "You've answered my questions. I guess I can answer some of yours."

"What do you do at the airport?"

"I'm an office clerk."

"Sounds boring," the Doctor said putting his hands into his trouser pockets.

"Not really. Keeps me busy. I love organising files and keeping records."

"Do you wish you did something else?" he asked her. 

She looked thoughtful for a moment.

"I think everyone does. I would have liked to be an historian."

"So, why aren't you?"

"A lot of reasons," she said sombrely.

The look on her face was of disappointment. The Doctor didn't press the matter.

Isabelle glanced over at him and questioned, "Why do you travel alone, Doctor? Don't you have a significant other back on Gallifrey?"

His features fell into sadness as he thought of the reason he was alone, but she had asked so he would answer. She had a tender way of asking that did not feel invasive. 

"No," he said plaintively and kept his eyes forward. "My planet is gone, along with everyone on it. I'm the only one left."

"How is it gone? Did it disappear? Oh, or did it ...," then pursing her lips she emanated a guttural sound to imitate an explosion. 

The Doctor thought for a moment as to whether to tell her or not. Isabelle seemed kind enough to understand. 

"There was a Great Time War between the Time Lords on Gallifrey and the Daleks of Skaro. The Daleks had the upper hand. There was only one way to end it, to stop the Daleks. I destroyed them and my planet. I was the only one to survive. I'm the last Time Lord."

The Doctor noticed Isabelle had stopped walking but he had kept going for a few more paces. His emotion was beginning to show on his face and he didn’t want her to see. He finally stopped and looked back at her as straight-faced as he could. Sorrow stained her visage as she stared in his direction. He immediately downcast his eyes upon the sand trying to hold back the tear that threatened to fall. She moved closer to him and touched his arm.

"I'm so sorry. Had I known, I wouldn't have asked."

"I know you didn't. You're the first person I've told since it happened. Although, I'm sure news of it has spread throughout the galaxies."

"Should I feel privileged knowing what you did? Because I don't. I feel sad. You're the last of your kind. That means when you die, Time Lords will be extinct."

"When you put it that way, yeah," he said with melancholy.

"Is there any possibility that some of them have survived?"

"No. I would know," he said tapping his temple.

Isabelle looked away perplexed. She embraced herself as she stood there.

After the Doctor glanced at her, he forcibly grinned and said, "Come on, there are still miles of beach to walk." 

As they began to walk again, the Doctor remembered he hadn't seen any photos of her family in her home. There were only picturesque scenes or posters.

"Do you have any family?" he asked, as she had asked about his family.

"No," she said flatly. 

"There's no one?"

"No," she said again with more force. Her face became hard.

The Doctor's brow furrowed as he watched Isabelle pick up her pace and moved away from him. She stopped a short distance ahead of him and sat in the sand looking out towards the water. The Doctor sat casually beside her.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be harsh. It's just that my family is gone as well," she stated simply. She continued to direct her attention to the water as she spoke. "I never knew my birth parents. My adoptive mum and dad are dead. They were older than most parents. Sometimes they were mistaken for being my grandparents. They died in a car accident when I was eighteen. I didn't like being on my own so I married not long after their death. He died in an accident at work two years ago. We never had children. We tried, but I am unable. Now, it's just me."

The Doctor gazed at her with bewilderment as he realised how difficult her life had been.

"Now, it's my turn to be sorry," the Doctor said softly.

"Don't be sorry. We both know what it's like to be alone. Yeah, sure, there are still humans around, but, most times, I feel utterly alone," she said.

She blinked and he watched as a single tear fell from her eye leaving a trail on her cheek that shown in the sunlight. She noticeably shivered.

"Are you cold?" the concerned Doctor asked. He was ready to take his jacket off and put it over her shoulders.

"No, not really," she answered trying to sound more cheerful. "I like the cold, always have." Isabelle smiled. 

He went to feel her forehead to see if she was feverish. An immediate image came to the Doctor. In her mind, he saw her sitting in front of her fireplace curled up on her couch with a cup of tea snuggled next to empty faced man.

"Ah," the Doctor said with a chuckle as he put down his hand. "We never did have that cup of tea."

"What was that?" she asked turning towards him. 

"Nothing," he replied promptly. He avoided eye contact with her as he looked from the sand to the water and out to the sky. 

"No. You said something about a cup of tea. I was just thinking . . .. Hold on. Can you . . .? Did you just read my mind?" 

Casually, he glanced towards her from the corner of his eye.

"I have the ability, yes," he replied.

"Stay out of my head," she said enunciating every word.

"I don't do it often. There has to be contact. I was just feeling for a fever. I got something more." He mumbled the latter. 

"Well, I'm telling you to stay out of my head. Gah, now I feel naked," she said as she wrapped her coat tighter around herself. "Oh, no, please don't see that image that just popped in my mind."

"I can't," he said.

"Don't lie."

"I'm not lying. There has to be physical contact for me to see inside your mind. Like this," he said putting his hand against her forehead again. "Oh."

The Doctor immediately took his hand away, then looked over at her as though he was about to say something but he saw the amused expression on her face. She started to laugh. It made him smile and laugh as well.

"We haven't properly kissed and you've already seen me naked," she said still laughing.

The Doctor smirked. He leant over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. 

"There. Now, you've been kissed," he said nonchalantly.

Isabelle appeared to be stunned for a moment as she touched her cheek where he had kissed her. He looked away grinning. Their laughter subsided as the sound of the crashing waves on the beach took over. 

"Are you hungry?" again he asked out of the blue.

"Yeah, now that you mention it," she said.

"Get your boots on. We'll go have lunch before retrieving Jenro," he told her.

Isabelle brushed off her feet to put on her socks and boots. The Doctor helped pull her up to a standing position once her laces were tied. They walked towards the solid ground of concrete and asphalt. 

The Doctor decided to take the TARDIS since walking where they needed to go would be nearly impossible due to traffic and distance.

Isabelle reminded him that they needed money. Neither of them had money that they would need. Working his sonic screwdriver magic at an ATM, the Doctor managed to get enough money for breakfast, lunch, tea, and supper for the next week, or so she told him. Then she scolded him for stealing. 

When he stopped next, the TARDIS stood on a sandy lot near a strip of buildings. Wonderful smells originated from one of them which the Doctor was walking towards. Isabelle followed.

Inside, there was a handwritten menu of all sorts of bakery items tacked onto the wall. Isabelle easily read the menu as it was in English, but the Doctor told her it was the Tardis interpreting for her. She was so excited that she did the ordering. 

As the items were gathered, the Doctor stood with his arms crossed standing slightly behind Isabelle. He could still see her in profile and she gave one man a pleasant smile as he stood there behind the counter. The man looked at her with intrigue. Then he retreated into the kitchen. The Doctor watched as Isabelle took a step back from the counter to stand even with him. She seemed nervous as she tucked a bothersome strand of hair behind her ear and cleared her throat. Isabelle then gazed down at the floor. The man that retreated into the kitchen emerged with a friend who was wiping his hands off on a towel. The man who had taken the order grunted. She looked up and approached the counter cautiously. He told her the total and she gingerly paid what was due.

The Doctor watched her trepidation towards the man. He quickly took a gander at each man. They were ogling her. The Doctor grabbed the bag of food in one hand and Isabelle's hand in the other. Outside, his swift steps took him towards the TARDIS practically dragging her behind him. Looking behind them to make sure they were not followed, he made sure she was in the box first, then he slammed the door behind them.

Setting the coordinates to the airport this time, he avoided looking at her. Once they landed, he stormed out of the TARDIS in a rage. She stepped out gingerly behind him. He stood stoic with his hands clenched into fists.

"Can I ask what that was all about?" she asked carefully.

"Those men," he seethed.

"They were looking at me. It happens," she said brushing it off.

The Doctor turned and glared at her with blue eyes that were now the colour of dark storm clouds. The hatred and loathing that emanated from the Doctor would have killed those men had they still been standing in his presence. Ever muscle was tense throughout his body.

"So, I guess lunch is out?" Isabelle said nonchalantly.

"It's the way they were looking at you. How can you be so passive about this?" he fumed.

"Because I don't know what they were thinking exactly. I have my suspicions. And I would rather keep it that way. I just want to move on and forget it happened," she calmly came back at him.

The Doctor took a deep breath and avoided eye contact with Isabelle. He was having difficulty controlling his emotions because he was starting to care for her.

"If you're not going to eat, that's fine. But I'm going back in the TARDIS," she stated as she turned to walk back into the blue box. 

The Doctor chanced a glance at her as he watched her disappear. He sighed heavily and followed her with deliberate steps.

Isabelle was already sitting on the jump seat when he entered. He hesitated at the ramp. He stood there like a shadow of himself, dark and looming.

"Not bad for men who look at me with vulgar intent," she stated as she casually glanced over at him.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. With unhurried steps, he approached the bench then sat down next to her. She took the bag off the console and handed it to him. He took out one of the flat breads and took a bite.

"Seems they put their efforts into baking rather than their carnal nature," he stated. Isabelle nearly choked as she laughed. The Doctor's hard expression melted away when he saw her smile. He finished his bread before saying, "I'm sorry I reacted in such a harsh manner."

"There is nothing to be sorry about. They didn't harm me and you didn't harm them. I suspect your blood sugar was low. You seem to be fine now that you have eaten," she concluded. The slightest of smiles hung on his lips. "So, what do we do now?" she asked as she brushed the crumbs off her front.

"We wait for Jenro to arrive at the airport," he stated.

"Where should we wait?"

"Wait inside the airport or here in the TARDIS, if you like."

She leant back on the seat. "Staying here wouldn't be all that bad," she replied with a smile.

"I could give you a tour," he offered.

"Really? There's more?" she said looking around.

"Of course, there's more," he replied. 

The Doctor went behind where they were sitting. He pressed on one of the circles inset in a hexagonal cut-out in the wall. It dematerialized to reveal a passageway.

"Are you kidding me?" she questioned getting off the seat to walk around to the opening of the corridor.

"Nope," he responded. "I'll show you where the kitchen is, and the bathroom. That's always useful. Then I can show you the library, the lounge, the smoking room. It's not what you think. You don't go in to smoke, it smokes?" He grinned.

"A smoking room that just smokes?" she questioned.

"Yup."

"Fantastic!" she said with a laugh.

The Doctor gestured for her to go down the corridor first. He followed up behind Isabelle. There was a short corridor before it branched out to the left and right.

"Which way?" she asked.

"You pick," he answered. She turned left. Isabelle's eyes were bright and searching. When she came to a door, she stopped. It was slightly ajar.

"What's in here?"

"Storage," he said rather quickly. He ushered her forward to the next door.

"Oh, okay," she said moving.

At the next door, the Doctor said, "Try opening the door." Isabelle tried the handle but nothing happened. "Now, put your hand on the door," as he pressed buttons on a keypad behind a small panel door beside the door. Isabelle hesitated. "It's not going to bite you."

She pressed her hand against the door. "Ow!" she yelped and withdrew her hand. "It did bite me!"

"No, it didn't. It took a DNA sample. This is your room now. Only you can open the door," he informed her. "Try the handle now."

She was hesitated again but managed to open it without incident.

"See," he said.

"Fantastic," she uttered as she walked in.

The large room had a red cubist looking chair and a rectangular dresser in black laminate. The room held nothing else. The walls were bare and stark white. The floor was solid and the same colour as the walls. The room glowed all on its own without visible lighting.

"Oh," she said rather disappointed.

The Doctor stepped in after her. "Oh, sorry. It's in default mode," he mentioned. "I can fix that but it takes a while.”

"No, that's okay. It's fine," she said. “It’s not like I’ll be staying very long anyway. You’ll be taking me home after we get Jenro to safety.”

"Right," he said, "Okay, moving on."

They went out of her room and continued on down the corridor. He showed her where the kitchen, dining room, library, and the smoking room were down a series of other corridors. They had just come out of the smoking room.

Isabelle was coughing as she spoke, "And that's all it does?"

"Yeah. I can never stay in there long enough to figure out why it's smoking," he replied closing the door and waving at the air around him.

"What about using a scuba mask or even a space suit, something with an oxygen tank?"

"I never thought of that," he said looking surprised. Isabelle chuckled.

"Um, there is a room I absolutely must see," she said.

"Which room is that?"

"The loo."

"Oh, yeah," he uttered. "I'll show you." He walked back the way they came. A few paces down he stood in front of a door.

"Here we are," he said and was just about to walk off when she stopped him by grabbing his leather-clad arm.

"Do you think you could wait for me? I don't think I could find my way back," she said sheepishly and let go of his arm.

"Really? It's not that difficult to get back. You just go down here, make a right, pass about seven doors, then turn left. Continue on until you see the door marked with . . . ," he said dragging out the last few words detecting that she wasn't going to remember all the verbal cues. "I'll just wait right here."

"I appreciate it. I won't be long," she said as she went in.

Inside, she leant against the closed door and took a deep breath. She then did her business and washed up at the sink splashing some water on her face as well. She glanced at herself in the mirror as she grabbed a towel. The woman staring back at her was more vibrant and alert. There was a glow about her. Isabelle touched her cheek, as did her reflection in the mirror.

"Are you all right in there?" the Doctor's muffled voice sounded through the door.

"Yes," she said shouted through the door. "I'm absolutely fine." This she said quieter and more to herself as she caught one more glance in the mirror at her shining image.

She opened the door and saw the Doctor standing there with his hands in his trouser pockets leaning against the wall.

"All set?" he inquired. She nodded with a dreamy smile.

He started walking back towards the direction they had come. She followed behind him. When they came near her room she stopped.

"I'm going to take one more look around my room," she said as she put her hand on the handle.

"Okay," he said and continued on. He turned right to go back to the console room.

Isabelle took her hand off the handle and walked down to the one door they passed that was cracked open. She paused in front of it then gave it a slight nudge. It swung open. From the doorway, she saw a leather club chair and a small round side table. Looking down the corridor, she made sure the Doctor hadn't double backed, then she ventured into the room.

There were oak carved wood panels that lined the walls. The floor was similar but it was polished so that you could see yourself in it. Oriental rugs covered over most of the opulent flooring. Mahogany bookshelves dotted themselves around the walls like Scot Guards looming high overhead touching the twelve-foot ceilings. Each unit was stuffed full of books. 

"This is definitely not storage," she muttered to herself.

Approaching the bookshelf directly across from her, she grazed over the books reading the spines. There were classics such as The Tale of Two Cities but also more recent titles like Life of Pi.

At first glance, the room seemed to be a study or library of sorts as she continued to peruse the bookshelves, except tucked into an alcove on the left side of the room was a bed. It was similar to the one she had at home, a canopy bed with heavy curtains tied to the bed posts. The curtains were dark as night almost black but there was a hue of blue in them. As she got closer to the bed, she saw it was untouched. Dust lay in the creases of the curtains. The duvet had not been turned down for some time. Everything else in the room was spotless.

"I see you found my room."

His voice startled her and she spun around on the spot. He wasn't upset. He had his arms crossed over his chest and was leaning against the shelf where she had discovered The Time Traveler's Wife.

"I'm sorry, the door was open. I thought it was a library," she responded hastily.

"It's alright, Isabelle," he said putting his arms down and strolling over towards her. He stuck his hands into his pockets and stopped a few feet from her.

"It's a beautiful room," she commented.

"You like it?" he questioned.

"Yeah, I do. It looks like it should be in a castle, not in a time and space ship," she stated moving towards one of the shelves. 

"I usually decorate rooms to represent places and time periods I've been to. I have a small bedroom that mirrors the ones on the Titanic. I have a game room that is very reminiscent of the 1980s," he explained.

"I bet that would take me back to my childhood," she said with a chuckle.

"Which one?" the Doctor asked.

"Are you serious?" she quipped. 

"No," he said with a smile. "How old are you anyway?" 

"I'm twenty-four," she answered turning her attention to the books.

"Just in the prime of your life. I came at a good time. It'll give you lots of stories to tell your grandkids," he said light-heartedly.

Isabelle didn't move. She just stared at the books in front of her. He tried to catch her eye but she merely stared blankly with her head slightly drooped.

"Isabelle," he said softly. She did not acknowledge him. Finally, he realised what he had said. "Isabelle, I'm sorry. I was stupid for saying that." 

She still didn't respond to him as he stood beside her.

"Please talk to me," he pleaded. "I like you. You’re all I have right now."

"That's a lie," she said just above a whisper. Pulling him into focus, she looked him in the eye. "You have all of time and space to talk to anyone. I have no one. Everyone I have loved is gone. I have no friends, no family, nothing. I will never have children or grandchildren. I thought you would remember that." 

"You have me," the Doctor said. "And I have you. As much as you would like to believe I have anyone to talk to in the universe, look around. Is anyone here travelling with me other than you?"

Isabelle gazed at him and he saw her shoulders relaxed.

"Right now, we have two choices," he told her. "We can make tea here or go out for tea while we wait for Jenro?"

She shook her head as a smile slipped its way onto her lips.

"Let's go out for tea and wait for Jenro," she offered serenely.

"All right," he said holding out his hand.


	4. At the Airport

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Doctor and Isabelle wait for Jenro. Things are starting to change between the two of them. Jenro takes notice of the change once he arrives on the scene.

When they were inside the airport, they ascertained Jenro's flight number and gate. Near the gate, they found a coffee shop. There were no creepy men there, Isabelle noted. To be certain, the Doctor ordered this time while she found them a table.

As they drank their cups of tea (hers with three sugars, his with two), they chatted about various things. Isabelle explained that she had been adopted at the age of four. A man had found her wandering the streets alone when she was two years old. Isabelle spoke lovingly about her adoptive parents and told him that their death made her realise that life was short and to seize opportunities. It was why she had gotten into the TARDIS. She admitted she had her reservations about the true nature of the blue box but when he had opened the door inside the West End Central Police Station, she knew he was telling the truth about its abilities.

The Doctor, on the other hand, went on ramblings about alien life on other planets Isabelle had never heard of before. She listened to everything he said, asking questions when appropriate. He spoke to her as if he was more like a professor, extending his knowledge to her. She absorbed every word.

What took the Doctor by surprise, after their rocky introduction, was how easy he found it to converse with Isabelle, liked how she used ‘fantastic’ all the time, and how well they got on with one another. Although she had explained that she was a little scared at first at the police station, her inhibitions seemed to go away when she grabbed the bag of eggs they had been searching for.

“I feel like I can accomplish anything now. Do your companions ever say that? Do they ever feel that way when they travel with you?” she said to him as she rested her head on the palm of her hand. He had explained how he often travelled with companions.

“I assume they do. No one has ever come out and said it quite like that,” the Doctor replied then took a sip of his tea.

He stared at her for a moment. Deep down there was something pulling at his two hearts. Momentarily, he shook his head trying to dissolve the thought running in his head, but to Isabelle, it looked as if he was in disbelief of her story as she continued to explain her run-in with the police officer at the police station. The problem was the thought or feeling, wouldn’t go away. He couldn’t possibly be falling in love with her. She was human after all.

Before long, they heard the announcement of the arrival of Jenro's flight. Isabelle had managed to find a piece of paper and borrowed a pen to write his name on it. She held it up as the passengers exited the gate. When Jenro saw the sign Isabelle had made, he beamed. He walked over with open arms. Isabelle rushed over to embrace him.

"It's so good to see you again, Jenro. I hope the police weren't too hard on you," she whispered into his ear.

"Not too hard. They do try though," he returned as he released her. "Ah, there he is, the good Doctor." Jenro walked up to the Doctor and shook his hand.

"I owe you one, sir," Jenro said. "If you should ever need anything you know where to find me."

"I do."

Jenro leaned closer towards the Doctor to say something to him even though Isabelle could still hear him. "Especially if you need plono," he said giving the Doctor a nudge.

The Doctor looked over at Isabelle with a smile and said in return, "I don't think that will be necessary."

"Oh, why not?" Jenro asked leaning back to glare at him.

The Doctor leaned over Jenro and whispered into his ear. When the Doctor finished speaking Jenro turned to regard her pleasantly.

"Oh, I see," Jenro replied.

"What?" Isabelle stated as she stared at the two men.

"We really should be going, Doctor," Jenro said.

"Yes, we should," the Doctor agreed. 

The two men started walking off down the terminal.

"What's plono?" Isabelle asked Jenro once she caught up.

"It's a herb we have on my planet," he stated. He and the Doctor looked at each other from the corner of their eyes.

"Oh," Isabelle replied. "What would you need plono for, Doctor?" she questioned walking behind them and coming up on the Doctor's other side while the two men walked closely together.

"Research. Cooking. A garden. Pick one," he said looking straight ahead as they strode through the airport.

"Well, don't you know?" 

"That's why I told Jenro it wasn't necessary. I don't need it."

"Jenro thinks you do."

He stopped which made the other two stop as well.

"Isabelle," he said with a slightly raised voice. A few people in the terminal turned to look at them. All three noticed the attention the Doctor had attracted. "Isabelle, " he said softer leaning closer to her, "plono is similar to your wacky-backy."

"Oh," she said with a raised brow. 

The Doctor stood up straight. Jenro gave the Doctor a puzzled look and seemed to be about to say something to him when the Doctor turned to him. The leather-clad alien shook his head at the Sudanese appearing alien. Jenro gave a shrug.

"We need to keep moving," the Doctor said and continued to walk.

Jenro walked with Isabelle towards the exit. They both trailed the Doctor by a few steps. Before they walked through the doors leading outside to the car park, Jenro turned to Isabelle.

"He likes you, you know," he said in a hushed voice.

"What?" Isabelle said as she looked taken aback.

"He enjoys your company," Jenro added.

"Well, that's nice to know, I guess," she said. “How can you tell?”

"My species are not only nursemaids, but we are matchmakers. We help the Krassen find their perfect mates. We've been known to assist with other species as well."

"As much as I like the Doctor in return, I don't like him on a romantic level. Besides, we're of two different species. It would never work."

"There have been known human and Time Lord pairings. Not many, mind you. Time Lords and Ladies have issues with human lifespans."

“Where are you going with all of this?” Isabelle questioned.

"Would you like me to say something to him for you?" Jenro said. 

"No, that won't be necessary. I'm sure he'll be on his way once he takes me home after we see you off. Besides, I don’t think he likes me in that way. Maybe as a friend but surely not a girlfriend," she surmised.

"I wouldn't be so sure," Jenro said with a chuckle.

Isabelle decided to ignore his comment. They approached the TARDIS as the Doctor opened the door. He stepped through the doorway first. She followed him in and Jenro closed the door behind himself.

"You ought to let a lady enter first, Doctor. It's only polite. Where are your manners?" Jenro said.

"I thought you were only supposed to do that on dates? She's not my date," he responded. The Doctor was looking at the monitor. There was a map on it. Isabelle gave Jenro a look of ‘I told you so.’

"It makes a female feel special even if she's not a date, my dear boy," Jenro explained. Isabelle smiled as she sat on the jump seat, but shook her head as Jenro tried to pair them.

"I am hardly a boy," the Doctor corrected as he glared over at Jenro. "I'm 900 years old."

"You certainly don't act like it," Jenro returned. "You must still be in your first incarnation."

"Ha!" the Doctor laughed.

"What's an incarnation?" Isabelle interrupted.

"You haven’t told her of your regenerating, Doctor?" Jenro questioned.

"I hadn't gotten to that yet," the Doctor said as he flipped switches.

"Oh, well. May I explain?" Jenro asked.

"Be my guest," the Doctor said.

"You see, our dear Doctor here can regenerate, er, change into another being if he should happen to perish. Time Lords keep most of their memories from their previous regenerations. Most Time Lords have twelve regenerations, thirteen incarnations. Which incarnation are you in currently, Doctor?"

"Ten, no wait, I don't count that one. Nine," the Doctor answered.

"What do you mean by 'perish'?" Isabelle asked with concern.

"Just what it means. If he should die, either of old age or accident."

"So, you only have three more times to die?" she questioned.

"Yeah," the Doctor responded as he glanced at Isabelle.

"You said you were 900 years old. If the average lifespan is, let’s say, seventy-eight years, you must have lived a bit longer in each incarnation, closer to a hundred years," she deduced.

"You haven't been using your incarnations to their full potential, Doctor," Jenro said condescendingly. The Doctor shrugged his shoulders as he gazed back at the view screen and began typing in coordinates. "The average incarnation for a Time Lord is a thousand years."

"You could technically still be in your first incarnation, and yet, you're not. That would mean you have died because of accidents and not old age. What have you been doing that is so dangerous?" Isabelle stated as she leaned forward on the jump seat.

"Saving the universe," the Doctor said as he glanced at her then turned back to the monitor. "Now, Jenro, would you kindly drop the discussion of my age and help me find your spaceship."

“Oh, yes,” he said to the Doctor. “Excuse me,” he said to Isabelle.

While Jenro pointed out the location of his ship on the viewscreen and the Doctor finished putting in the coordinates, Isabelle stared at the Doctor with a furrowed brow. He was fascinating, easy to talk to, and friendly. Yet the more she learned about him, the more she realized how reckless he was.

As she looked away from him, the Doctor looked over to her knowing what was going through her mind. If he wanted her for a companion, it would be now or never.

The TARDIS landed with a boom in a construction zone. The Doctor retrieved the eggs for Jenro from a holding compartment. Jenro was pleased that no harm had come to them. Isabelle gave him a hug. 

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Jenro. This has been a day to remember. Aliens are definitely not as they are portrayed in movies. Of the two I have met, one is saving the universe, and the other is making sure it continues with new life. I'm sure there must be dangerous aliens as well. There is always good and evil in everything because there has to be a balance," she stated. Jenro and the Doctor looked at each other and beamed at Isabelle.

"You are absolutely correct, Isabelle. You have been a delight, but I must be off," Jenro returned.

The Doctor and Isabelle made sure Jenro took off safely. As the day turned to night, they watched his ship sail off to the moon. Once he was gone, they retreated back into the TARDIS.

"Well, I guess that is done," Isabelle remarked.

"Yes, it is," the Doctor returned. "Home?"

Thoughts and more questions raced through her mind but she kept them to herself. She wondered what happened to the people who travelled with the Doctor. Did they die? Did they go back home like she was about to do? How long did they stay with him? Was it a weekend or years? How many had travelled with him? Still, Isabelle remained silent. Merely nodding, she said, “Take me home.”


	5. Five Minutes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They had been gone five minutes. And this scene lasts for five minutes.

Isabelle stood in her kitchen staring at the clock on the wall. It read five minutes after the time she had gotten into the TARDIS to travel to the jail where Jenro was being held. Only five minutes had elapsed but her mind and body knew a whole day and a half had past. In only five minutes, she had met another alien, saved alien eggs, and watched an alien spacecraft shoot to the moon.

She turned away from the clock towards the Doctor.

"I guess this is it. You'll be on your way and I'll continue to live my life here," Isabelle stated. 

The Doctor pondered before responding. "It doesn't have to be that way."

Isabelle chuckled, "Yes, it does."

"What are you afraid of, Isabelle?" the Doctor asked as he leaned against her kitchen counter with his arms folded over his chest.

"Who says I'm afraid?" she said with gumption. 

The Doctor smirked and shook his head.

"All right! I'm afraid it will be too much." 

"But you understand what is out there already, the adventure, the creatures. Look at the knowledge you will gain," he said excitedly.

"I am. And I'm just not sure I could handle it."

"I think you can. Come here," he said as he grabbed her hand and led her into her lounge. He pointed at the walls. "Look at all these charts and notes. You were born to do this."

"That's what you think," she said almost to herself crossing her arms over her chest.

"That's what I believe."

"How can you believe that? When right now, I'm scared to death! You obviously live a dangerous life since you haven't lived to your full life expectancy. I don't have that kind of courage."

"Do I need to remind you that you took the initiative to look for the Krassen eggs by yourself? And outwitted the guard? You befriended an alien today. He will forever remember you," the Doctor noted. 

"Jenro won't remember me," Isabelle slated herself.

"I wasn't talking about Jenro," the Doctor muttered.

Isabelle stared at the Doctor. He returned her gaze.

"What about my life here? What will happen with my job, my house, my bills?" she questioned.

"They'll still be here when you return. We could be gone for months but I could have you back by tomorrow, your time," he explained.

"Don't you worry something will happen to me?" she asked. "What if I die?"

"I will try to keep you safe, but it is a risk you have to take. If you are willing to take it," he said with a bit of gloom.

"Will it always be dangerous?"

"Not always."

"And eventually, you will bring me back and leave, forever. Won't you?"

"Yes, but that doesn't have to be for a while."

"How long, Doctor? How long before you tire of me?"

"I never get tired of anyone. I just know when the time is right for you to return," he said.

Isabelle nodded and meandered away from him then back again in thought.

"It's strange. I barely know you, yet I feel I know about you. Like I've heard about you in whispers or dreams. And now, you're here. These charts and posters were getting me ready for the moment of your arrival. And yet, I know the dangers that lie ahead," she surmised. She shook her head and sighed, "But I can't."

"I understand," he softly said. The disappointment shone on his face.

The Doctor's gaze faltered from hers as she tried desperately to hold onto it. He slowly turned away from her walking towards the garden door. She followed him out to the TARDIS. He looked at her one more time as he stood by the door. Isabelle gave him a small weak wave of her hand as a final farewell.

"You could have been great, Isabelle," he noted.

"Maybe, and maybe not," she replied weakly.

The Doctor entered the blue police box closing the door behind him. Isabelle turned from the TARDIS. Her hand covered her mouth and she went quickly back into the house. The familiar whooshing groan of the TARDIS sounded and then faded away. Isabelle ran up the stairs.

Five minutes later, Isabelle was falling asleep to her own sobs.


End file.
